Head of the Ministry of Finance Anton Siluanov believes that a ban on cryptocurrencies in Russia is impossible. The minister called for bringing cryptocurrencies to the legal field, as well as setting a limit on investments in cryptocurrencies for unqualified investors in order to reduce risks. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov compared the ban on cryptocurrencies in Russia with attempts to ban the Internet. According to the head of the Ministry of Finance, it is necessary to make cryptocurrencies investment attractive, and the risks that the Bank of Russia previously announced can be regulated.

“The Central Bank wants to take and ban crypto-assets, cryptocurrencies, arguing that this creates risks, primarily for citizens, can “infect” financial institutions, banks and create an opaque settlement market. This is the same as banning the Internet, which is impossible, ”Forbes quotes the minister.

Siluanov noted that he understands what risks the Central Bank warns about, but insists that it is always better to regulate the sector than to ban it. The head of the Ministry of Finance called for banks and exchanges to be responsible for identifying the holders of crypto assets and controlling them. Siluanov said that his department opposes the ban on mining in the country.

“We believe that [mining] should not be banned, it should be introduced into the legal field, assigned an appropriate economic activity code, taxed from this and brought miners into the legal field. I don’t understand why all this is limited and banned,” the minister said.

According to him, the tax should be levied on the difference between the usual fiat currencies invested and withdrawn into cryptocurrency.

Limit for inexperienced investors

The Ministry of Finance proposes to set a limit for investments in cryptocurrency for inexperienced investors. According to Siluanov, it can amount to 50-100 thousand rubles. in equivalent.

“We are talking about a certain minimum amount of resources that unqualified investors could use. The numbers can be different - from 50 to 100 thousand in equivalent. Our concept is this,” the minister said.

Earlier, his deputy Aleksey Moiseev proposed to ban unqualified investors from purchasing cryptocurrencies worth more than 50 thousand rubles.

At the same time, according to Moiseev, in order to obtain the status of a qualified investor for the purchase of cryptocurrency, it is proposed to establish more stringent requirements than in the traditional financial environment.

The search for a solution continues

Siluanov pointed out that the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank still do not have a common understanding on the regulation of cryptocurrencies, but attempts to resolve the differences continue.

The agency agrees with the Bank of Russia only that payments in cryptocurrency should not be allowed, since they are not allowed in Russia and other countries.

“We have been arguing over this law for a year and a half, delay is not good for anyone. Even if we make a mistake somewhere, we can always correct it. It is worse when the decision is delayed, and the gray sector develops further,” Siluanov said. If the parties cannot find a compromise, they will go to the government to conduct a procedure for resolving disagreements.

According to Siluanov, the Ministry of Finance can submit a package of bills with a table of disagreements to the Cabinet of Ministers in order to use the existing procedure for their removal.

“Otherwise, we will never reach an option that will need to be implemented,” the minister said, answering a question about what steps would be taken if there was no compromise with the Central Bank regarding the regulation of the digital currency market.

According to the position of the Ministry of Finance, the regulation of cryptocurrencies in Russia is possible without their prohibition. The ministry believes that both the complete lack of regulation of cryptocurrencies and their ban will lead to destabilization of the industry, an increase in the share of the shadow economy and an increase in fraud.

On February 8, the government approved the “Concept of legislative regulation of the mechanisms for organizing the circulation of digital currencies”, according to which the circulation of cryptocurrencies will be regulated by the state with an “emphasis on protecting the rights of ordinary investors”.

The Cabinet of Ministers also proposed dividing cryptocurrency investors into qualified and unqualified, while for the latter it is proposed to set limits on transactions.

bbabo.Net